Report that tells the story of how a research project, commissioned and led by a group of young people called PEAR, was carried out. PEAR (Public health, Education, Awareness, Research) was an NCB Research Centre project which supported young people’s involvement in public health research with funding support from the Wellcome Trust and the Public Health Research Consortium (PHRC)2. The PEAR group were 20 young people, aged 13–18, from London and Leeds, who met approximately four times a year during school holidays during 2008-2010.